Track-fastener.



J. W. STEPHENSON.

TRACK FASTENER. I APPLICATION FILED MAR. a, 1913. RENEWED 001 .31, 1913. 1,085,881

Patented Feb. 3, 1914.

"UNITED STATES PATENT @FFTGE.

JOHN W. STEPHENSON, OF TOLEDO, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE NATIONAL MALLEABLE CASTINGS COMPANY, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

TRACK-FASTENER.

Patented Feb. 3,1914.

Application filed March 3, 1913, Serial No. 751,670. Renewed October 31, 1913. Serial No. 798,587.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, JOHN W. STEPHEN- son, a citizen of the United States, residing at Toledo, Lucas county, Ohio, have invented new and useful Improvements in Track- Fasteners, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 shows in section the application of my improved fastener; Fig. 2 is a similar section showing another position of the rail in the fastener; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the construction shown in Fig. 2; Figs. 4 and 5 are details of the shim plate and shim respectively.

My invention relates to track fasteners of the type in which the parts are secured to the rails by means of wedges cooperating with bendable locking means.

My improvement consists in means for moving the rails laterally in such track fasteners to compensate for wear of the rails without disturbing the engagement of the fasteners with the ties.

My device is especially useful on curves on which traffic is heavy and upon which excessive wear of the rails is caused by wheel flanges, thus necessitating frequent moving of the rails in order to maintain the requisite gage of the track. The frequent moving of the rails entails a large amount of labor and results in the ties being spike killed; that is, so riddled and split with the frequent spiking that their life is extremely short, and the expense of labor and maintenance accordingly high. lVith my device the labor cost is low and the life of the ties is greatly increased, since, by the application of my invention, I am enabled to maintain the fastener plates in their initial positions, while the movement and change of parts permit re-adjustment of the rails without disturbance of the fastener plates from their positions on the ties.

Referring to the drawings, 2 indicates the rail, and 8 the fastener plate which is adapted to be spiked or secured to the tie. The plate 3 has a jaw 4 adapted to engage one edge of the base of the rail. At the opposite side of the rail the plate 3 has a projection 5, which is undercut and inclined forwardly and longitudinally of the rail. The projection 5 and the side of the rail form a longitudinal inclined guideway 6 for the rail brace or wedge 7, which is adapted to grasp and support the rail between its base and head. The slot 8 extends longitudinally through the rail brace 7 and registers with the curved deflecting channel 9 in the plate 3. The tapered bendable key member 10, when driven through the slot 8 and the channel 9 until its head 11 bears against the brace 7, locks the brace 7 and plate 3 securely together and prevents movement of either.

The shim 12, shown in Figs. 1 and 5, is shaped so as to fit between the jaw 4 and a rail flange, and preferably has a lip 13 overlying the upper surface of the rail flange, and end clamps 14 for engaging the ends of the jaw 4 to prevent movement relative to the plate. The shim-plate 15, shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4, is of a thickness sufficient to compensate for the space taken up by the shim l2 and has a tongue 16 which is adapted to fit in the groove 17 on the rear side of the brace 7 and an abutment 18 which holds the shim-plate fro-m movement relative to the brace when the shim-plate is applied to the brace 7 for insertion in the fastener.

It is customary on railroads to use the rails until the inner faces of the rail head have become so worn that in order to maintain the gage the rails must be moved. One rail, together with its tie plates, is then taken up and moved toward the other rail, and rail and tie plates respiked to the tie. This operation is repeated alternately on both rails, until they are so worn that they can no longer be used and then the rails must be replaced and the tie plates respiked in initial position. As has been explained, this frequent respiking renders the life of the ties comparatively short.

Employing my invention in the usual practice on railroads, I apply my fastener to the rails, as is shown in Fig. 1, with. the shim 12 in place between the jaw 4 and the flange of the rail. Then, when the heads of the rails have become worn by the flanges of the wheels to such an extent that there is necessitated a reestablishment of the standard gage, I drive out the rail braces 7 and their locking keys 10 along one of the rails, take the shims 12 out of the fasteners and insert the shim plates 15, as is shown in Fig. 2, 011 the inclined rear faces of the braces 7, and again drive the braces 7 into the guideways and lock them therein with the keys 10. The longitudinally inclined guideways 6 cause the braces 7, with the plates 15 attached thereto, to force the opposite flange of the rail against the jaw at, thus moving the rail toward the opposite rail a distance equal to the width of the shim plate 15, and thereby restoring the proper gage.

When further wear on the heads of the rails has taken place, which requires the gage to be rectified a second time, I remove the shims 12 from the fasteners on the opposite rail, and insert the shim plates 15, and the actions of the braces with the shim plates 15 interposed between them and the projections 5 ill move the second rail toward the first moved rail and restore the proper gage.

When the rails have again worn to the point of unfitness they may be reversed so that the unworii outer sides of the rail heads will then become the inner faces of the rails. The cycle of operations may then be repeated, and when both sets of rails have again been moved inward in the manner described above, they are usually replaced.

I have found that, while the rails may be moved by utilizing a shim similar to the shim 12 by simply driving the brace 7 tan ther into the guideway 6, in order to move the rail a sutlieient transverse distance to engage the jaw 4- it is necessary to make either a very long guideway or the incline of the projection 5 toward the rail at such a steep angle that the best wedging results are not obtained. I therefore find it preferable to employ an additional shim, such as the shim 15, by which means I am enabled to use a normal wedging angle and a guideway of usual length, and therebyobtain a more practical device for the maintenance of the gage.

Various modifications may be made in the construction and application of the track fasteners, which I have described and shown herein, without departing from my invention, since What I claim is:

1. In a track fastener, a fastener plate adapted for engagement with the tie and having a plurality of projections thereon, a wedge member, bendable means cooperating with a curved guideway and being adapted to lock the wedge member in position in said plate, and removable means for alternate insertion between the rail and either of said projections, the removable means being adapted to provide for movement of the rail transversely of the fastener plate.

2. In a track fastener, a fastener plate, a plurality of projections on said plate, a rail engaging member adapted to be positioned between one flange of the rail and one of said projections, bendable means cooperating with a curved guidewayand adapted to lock the rail engaging member in position in said plate, and removable means for adjusting the position of the rail relative to the base member, said means being comprised of alternately employed shims located between one of said projections and atlange of the rail.

3. In a track fastener, a fastener plate adapted for engagement with the tie and having a plurality of projections, a wedge member, bendable locking means cooperating with a curved deflecting channel in the plate for locking the wedge member in position, a shim member cooperating with said wedge member and being adapted for insertion in said plate to cause transverse movement of the rail relative to the plate, to compensate for wear on the rail.

4. in track fasteners, a fastener plate having a plurality of projections, wedging means operating between one of said projections and the rail and being adapted to secure the rail on the plate, bendable locking means cooperating with an inclined guideway for locking the wedging means, and adjustable means comprising a plurality of shims adapted to be inserted alternately between said projections and opposite sides of the rail for adjusting the position of the rail.

5. In track fasteners, a fastener plate having a plurality of projections, wedging means operating between one of said projections and the rail and being adapted to secure the rail on the plate, bendable locking means cooperating with an inclined guideway for locking the wedging means, and compensating means insertible on either side of the rail base and between the said projections for adjusting the position of the rail.

JOHN W. STEPHENSON. \Vitnesse CHESTER K. Bnoons, HARRY E. ORR.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the flemmissioner of latents.

Washington, D. C. 

